are permitted to combine the five daily prayers
into three (morning, afternoon, and evening),
and, in remembrance of the events of Karbala,
they are expected to touch a small block made of
earth from Karbala with their foreheads during
prostrations in daily prayer, rather than the prayer
rug. In addition to giving alms in charity, they also
pay an annual tax of one-fifth of their net income,
called the khums, for the benefit of the ulama,
descendants of Muhammad, orphans, and other
needy individuals. They also are required to per-
form the hajj if they are able, as are Sunnis. Other
obligatory acts include defensive Jihad (for men)
and calling on people to do what is good and
avoid what is evil. However, in situations where
their safety and security are in danger, the Shia
are encouraged to practice taqiyya, which allows
them to conceal their Shii beliefs from Sunnis and
others who might harm them.
pOpulAr DEvOTIONAlISM
The most visible characteristic of Twelver religios-
ity through the centuries has been individual and
communal attachment to the 12 Imams, Fatima,
Muhammad, and other descendants of the holy
family. This is reflected in the cycle of religious
holidays that commemorate the martyrdom of the
Imams each year, as well as in ritual performances,
and sacred art and architecture. The most promi-
nent ritual practices commemorate the martyrdom
of Husayn during ashUra; they involve lamenta-
tions, poetic eulogies, passion plays, sermons,
processions, self-flagellation and mutilation, and
pilgrimage (ziyara) to Husayn’s shrine in Karbala,
Iraq. A pilgrim who has gone there is honored by
being called karbalai—as a person who has gone
to Mecca for the hajj is called hajji. The tombs of
other Imams and their descendants are also the
objects of pilgrimage, including those of women,
such as Sayyida zaynab, the sister of Husayn, in
Damascus, and the Fatima Maasuma, sister of
Imam Rida, the eighth Imam, in Qumm. Addi-
tionally, the Shia have constructed special ritual
centers for local performances of Ashura obser-
vances that are known variously as husayniyyas,
imambarahs, imambargas, and taaziyakhanas.pOlITICAl ShISM AND rEFOrM
While religious traditionalism and popular devo-
tion to the Imams remain important aspects of
Twelve-Imam Shiism in the late 20th and early
21st centuries, it, like sUnnism, has also been
affected by the far-reaching impact of religious
reform movements and political activism. Among
the ulama political activism became significant
in the late 19th century as popular opposition to
concessions made to the British by the shah led to
the Tobacco Revolt of 1892, which was legitimated
by a fatwa from Hujjat al-Islam Mirza Shirazi. The
ulama were also active in the Constitutional Revo-
lution of 1905–11, standing both for and against
limiting the shah’s power with a constitutional
monarchy. In addition to anti-imperialism, several
leading Shii ulama criticized Shii traditionalism
and promoted pan-islamism and religious reform
as a way for Muslims to meet the challenges of
colonialism and modernity. Leading reformer-
activists during this period included Jamal al-din
al-aFghani (d. 1897) and Hadi Najmabadi (d.
1902). Iranian ulama as a whole supported the
establishment of the Pahlavi dynasty in the 1920s,
even though they ended up opposing its secular
modernization policies and efforts on behalf of
women. Their opposition intensified in the 1960s
when mUhammad reza shah (pahlavi) (r. 1941–
79) launched his modernization program, known
as the White Revolution. Religious and secular
opposition alike coalesced around the figure of
Khomeini and led to the iranian revolUtion oF
1978–79, which ended the Pahlavi dynasty and
established a new government based on Khomei-
ni’s ideology of Islamic government (wilayat al-
faqih), much to the dismay of Iranian democrats
and leftist parties. Khomeini’s revolutionary Shii
message and the Shii liberation theology of ali
shariati (d. 1977) energized Islamic movements
and Shii communities in much of the Middle
East and South Asia. Even though KhomeiniK 680 Twelve-Imam Shiism